End of the Season at Plattekill...

Heaven, that's what it looked like there at Plattekill on Saturday. Above the clouds. And it was heavenly too, but also bittersweet because Saturday was the penultimate day of skiing for the season. The hill was melting fast and for the mogul competition skiers had to ride over on an ATV fitted with ski racks. 

I have to say I'm still sad. Yeah, I've been playing tennis and cycling this week (and the end of the season is very good for my novel-in-progress), but that doesn't quite cut it. So, I leave you with these last parting shots. And some results of the bump competition too. I judged with Harvey Road of the NY Ski blog. I was on jumps. He was on style; Eli from the ski patrol manned the stopwatch. Top prize went to Ted Battesh from Sarasota Springs who got a season pass for 2012/13, and then second prize to Caleb Jensen and third to the awesome Joe Supp (brother of Elaine who is ranked in the top 3 nationally in boardercross and of Steve Supp, aka Vintage Skier Man, and his long skis). 

And for all who hoped Steve might compete – and come on a Saturday rather than his usual Sunday – a dapper gentleman in a pink button-down and long straight skis took to the bumps between competitors. He rocked quite a line, not a zipper, but the man had style. That shirt alone was a bold statement. 

I will miss you all till next year. Maybe we could even get a dumping of snow still. I've not put away my skis or poles yet. (Though we have planted broccoli, peas, spinach and chard... ). Oh and if anyone can tell me who that is rocking the bumps below send me a message, okay? Or just send me a message so we can shed tears about the end of the season....

Photo by Dick Sanford at the Catskill Mountain News

Photo by Dick Sanford.

Photo by Dick Sanford

Till Next Year... 

St Platty's Day

The Bar at Plattekill

There are plenty of things I love about Plattekill – steep vertical, chilled vibe, no lift lines... and the bar. They have 12 beers on tap – including local brews from Ommegang and The Davidson Bros' Dacker Ale, Ithaca Nut Brown Ale, but one fact sticks out to me on the beer front: They sell more Stella than anywhere else in the Catskills. Which makes me feel like I'm back in London again.

This weekend there will also, of course, be Guinness and Jameson's and Murphy's. And what Nate Batthany (who is in charge of the awesome bar as well as the food in the bar – that steak quesadilla, say) calls an "Irish Car Bomb." Now while I was left stuttering over this politically tricky, say, notion, he explained that this was a combo of Bailey's and Jameson's and said, "You don't know what it is because you're not a college student." Too right. But anyone who drinks Bailey's has bigger problems. That stuff is just gross. So is Irish Whiskey. I'm a malt lady myself. Scotch malt.

Yes, Rudd checking your email helps you ski bumps. Or are you putting on Ryan Adams?

The other thing on tap (ha-ha) this weekend is the Bumps competition on Blockbuster. With its 1000 feet straight vert (the only of its kind in the Cats)  the soundtrack for the competition should be The Chemical Brother's Block Rockin' Beats, which might just date me as much as the, ahem, "Car Bomb." There will be spring conditions so everyone can bomb the bumps (perhaps not with a "Car Bomb" though. And yours truly will be judging. I am open to all influence peddling. Remember I like Scotch (as in from Scotland and not Ireland) whisky.

Nailing the kicker at the top Block (and also proving why action sports photography is a proven skill. He did catch air.

So bring your sunscreen, maybe even rock your retro gear. With temps in the 70s next week this could be our last weekend.... And bear in mind this bon-mot from Nate about the bar: "Whenever anyone asks what our hours are, I say, 'we close when you go home. It's till the last man standing.'" Which is some professional drinking, I say.

She caught air too... I just didn't. At least not on film.

The Tunis clan takes in the glory of the day and 1000 feet of vert.

Elaine Supp, Plattekill Rider, Rocks the Boardercross

Elaine Supp is like a Plattekill fairytale. Her dad (my ski hero) could be called the mascot on the mountain with his long skis and excellent style, and Elaine on her snowboard is bringing fame to our little hill.

She is ranked third in the nation in boardercross (it’s like motocross on snow with jumps berms and 3 other racers on the course with you going gangbusters). And this is a sport she only started competing in last year. As you might recall, she got her start when she saw a boarder cross race on TV and thought, “Hey I could do that.”

For most people that kind of idle idea dies away – or should. Not for Elaine. She entered a race the next weekend. And won. Now talking about it on the lift recently she says she stayed up late reading and re-reading the rules, and they said there was an inspection at nine AM. “So, I thought that just meant they wanted to make sure I had the right bib and helmet and board since you need specific ones,” she laughs. “No it meant we got to ride the course. I had no clue.”

She went from no clue to medal stand. She kept racing and winning, wining and racing and went to the Nationals and placed third. Now having won pretty much every race she’s entered this season she’s about to go back to the Nationals in Colorado in early April. And she even has sponsors. There’s SPY, Swany, Sno Life, Berma, sending her gear, but skiers at Plattekill have  (and still are) to make sure she can make it to Colorado and represent the little mountain that could… 

Powder and Ski Patrol at Plattekill This Weekend

Let's hear it for the O'Donnell lady patrollers...

Okay this isn't really a post. It's not long. I'd wanted to write about the O'Donnell women. Three generations of them serve on the ski patrol. There's Rickie and her daughter-in-law Christy in this picture here (thank you Becky Porter for it). Rickie's granddaughter Bailey O'Donnell also serves in a red jacket. This is cool for three reasons: one ski patrol across the country are aging and need young' uns (or younger ones) to sign up and the O'Donnell family is keeping the ranks staffed. Then, Plattekill does its part to recruit and train and educate new patrollers thanks to Bim Ashford. Most importantly this gives me another excuse to talk up the ski patrol raffle and BBQ this Saturday.

Those fine men and women in red have your back. (And mine...). At Platty they're all volunteers, so let's show them our love. Particularly when we're skiing lots of lovely powder.

Okay that's a segue to show some powder shots that Becky Porter took on Sunday. I must apologize for forgetting my camera today. But, I had more serious thoughts on my mind: FRESH TRACKS. Sorry (sort of) if you missed them.

Thank you Becky Porter for remembering your camera.... 

Yes that's powder. I know you might have forgotten what it looks like.